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INDONESIA: Dozens are injured in police attacks during protests against alleged land grabbing

December 9, 2009

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION – URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-171-2009 



9 December 2009
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INDONESIA: Dozens are injured in police attacks during protests against alleged land grabbing

ISSUES: Police violence; freedom of expression; right to land; administration of justice
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Right Commission (AHRC) has been informed that the Indonesian police shot at, arrested and intimidated peasants who were protesting against the alleged illegal occupation of their land by a government-owned plantation company. The land workers have been protesting regularly for years, but rather than address their concerns, the local authorities have cracked down aggressively on their protests. Dozens of peasants been injured by police violence during the last year with at least 11 shot; 13 face criminal trials for their protest actions.

CASE DETAILS:

According to information we have received from the South Sulawesi Legal Aid Institute and the South Sulawesi office of WALHI (Wahana Lingkungan Hidup Indonesia or Indonesian Environment Forum), a demonstration was held on 15 July 2009 by land workers, near a plantation belonging to PT Perkebunan Nusantara (PTPN) section XIV. The clashes between the workers (all from Takalar, North Polongbangkeng) and PTPN employees grew violent, and the Takalar Resort Police filed investigation reports (BAP) against nine peasants. One was arrested and two more were taken into police custody, though no reports were filed against the PTPN employees. During the following days police reportedly conducted aggressive sweeping operations in the local villages and arrested several more land workers for their role in the protests, while intimidating others.

We are told that various such clashes have happened over the last year (as pictured below) with at least 11 persons wounded in police shootings (inlcuding Nasming Nanring, right), and others injured in beatings. In a related incident, a group of ten men were attacked by police on 25 October 2009. They had met with four mobile brigade (Brimob) officers – who regularly protect commercial premises – at PTPN plantation block K, and were later chased away by an intelligence member of the local military district command (Takalar Kodim). At 6pm as the villagers were returning home they were reportedly chased and shot at by eight Brimob officers, who arrested two of the men: Baddu Dg Sikki from Panaikang village and Basee Dg Gassing from Ma'lolo of Ko'mara village. The officers then continued to follow the other eight civilians for two hours, firing shots and tear gas (photo here) at them until they arrived at their home village.

According to our information, 13 of the peasants who took part in the July demonstration have been prosecuted under various charges. However at least two articles, 160 (disobedience against public authorities) and 212 (resistance and rebellion) of the Indonesian Penal Code (KUHP) appear to have been used questionably, in violation of the workers' rights to free expression and association. The victims are now defendants in criminal trials in Takalar District Court, with eight currently in police custody and five others imprisoned for the duration of the trial.

The National Commission for Human Rights has not responded to the allegations of human rights violations in this case.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

According to information presented by local peasants, land that they have owned since 1940 was taken over by the government in 1980 and 1981, without dialogue or enough compensation. More than 2000 peasants from the North Polongbangkeng sub-district lost access to their traditional farming land. PTPN XIV claimed rights to the land between 1994 and 1996 by issuing a certificate that ensured small regular rental payments to the villagers, but this reportedly expired between 2005 and 2006. Since then the villagers' attempts to access to their land have allegedly been denied, and their protests have become increasingly aggressive. The police and local authorities have offered unstinting support to the plantation company and abused both their power and the constitution of the country, rather than trying to arrange a dialogue between the two parties to legally and democratically address their concerns and interests.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:

It is evident that the police in Indonesia continue to use violence to repress protests from civil society, which often arise because a series of rights have been consistently denied. Brimob are notorious for using armed violence against civilians, and the AHRC has documented several other incidents of police brutality this year, among them UAC-155-2009 and AHRC-UAC-135-2009.

The appropriation of civilian-owned farmland for the use for government-owned state plantations, and the use of state security forces to protect them, are also common problems in Indonesia and they warrant top-level attention. Indonesia is a state party to both the International Covenant on Civil and Political Right (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural rights, both of which protect citizens' rights to property, to free expression and association, to a fair trial and to personal security. On a national level the right to protection is cited in the 1945 constitution, and by the recently-enacted regulation of the Chief of Indonesian National Police Number 8 of 2009 which deals with the keeping of human rights standards in the police force.

SUGGESTED ACTION:

Please send your letters to the authorities listed below asking for their intervention, and call on the National Police Commission to investigate the violent conduct of police officers in this incident.

The AHRC has written to the UN Working Group on the arbitrary detention and the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders.

To support this appeal please click here:

SAMPLE LETTER:

Dear _______________,

INDONESIA: Dozens are injured in police attacks during protests against alleged land grabbing

Names of victims of police violence (in 2008 and 2009):
1. Abidin Tika, male, 43 years old; shot in the waist and rib.
2. Tojeng, male, 38 years old; shot in the right arm.
3. Bunga, female, 40 years old, shot in the right calf.
4. Ria, female, 25 years old, shot in the right arm.
5. Jamaluddin La’bang, shot in the right calf.
6. Massu, shot in the face.
7. Nasming Nanring, bullet grazing to the head.
8. Nai, shot in the chest.
9. Jumaing Sarro, shot in the thigh.
10. Budianto, victim of violence.
11. Haris Naba, shot in the knee.
12. Jufri Tona, shot in the stomach.
13 other victims are currently charged under the Indonesian penal code (KUHP), articles 170 (2), 351 (1), 55 (1), 160, 212 and under the law of plantation.

Name of Perpetrators:
1. Officers of the Takalar police resort
2. Management of PTPN XIV
3. Members of the Mobile Brigade (Brimob) of the south and west Sulawesi district police.

Dates of the incidents: 10 October 2008, 15 July 2008, 15 July 2009
Place of arrest: Takalar Regency of South Sulawesi province

I am writing to voice my deepest concern regarding a series of police attacks on protesting agricultural workers in the North Polongbangkeng sub-district of Takalar Regency of South Sulawesi Province.

According to information I have received from the South Sulawesi Legal Aid Institute and the South Sulawesi office of WALHI, a demonstration was held on 15 July 2009 by land workers near a plantation belonging to PT Perkebunan Nusantara (PTPN) section XIV. The clashes between the workers and PTPN employees grew violent, and the Takalar Resort Police filed investigation reports (BAP) against nine peasants. One was arrested and two more were taken into police custody, though no reports were filed against the PTPN employees. During the following days police reportedly conducted aggressive sweeping operations in the local villages and arrested several more land workers for their role in the protests, while intimidating others.

I am told that various such clashes have happened over the last year with at least 11 persons wounded in police shootings, and others injured in beatings. In a related incident, a group of ten men were attacked by police on 25 October 2009. They had met with mobile brigade (Brimob) officers at PTPN plantation block K, but as they were returning home they were reportedly chased and shot at by a group of eight Brimob officers, who arrested two of the men: Baddu Dg Sikki and Basee Dg Gassing. I am told that the officers then continued to follow the other eight civilians for two hours, firing shots and tear gas at them until they arrived at their home village.

According to my information 13 of the peasants who took part in the July demonstration have been charged and prosecuted, under various charges, yet I question the use of at least two articles, 160 and 212, of the Indonesian Penal Code (KUHP), since they suggest a violation of the workers' rights to free expression and association. They are detained at the police resort of Takalar. I am told that the National Commission for Human Rights has not responded to allegations connected to this case.

It is evident that the police in Indonesia continue to use violence to repress protests from civil society, which often arise because a series of rights have been consistently denied. Brimob are notorious for using armed violence against civilians. The appropriation of civilian-owned farmland for the use for government-owned state plantations, and the use of state security forces to protect them, are also common problems in Indonesia, and they warrant top-level attention.

The police and local authorities appear to have offered unstinting support to the plantation company and abused both their power and the constitution of the country, rather than trying to arrange a dialogue between the two parties to legally and democratically address their concerns and interests.

I urge you to ensure that this matter is thoroughly investigated, and that disciplinary and legal action be imposed on the police officers involved, and I call for a proper review of the victims' convictions. If any irregularities are found in the legality of their charges and conviction, their case must be withdrawn promptly. I also call for the effective implementation of the Regulation of the Chief of Indonesian National Police Number 8 of 2009, which was enacted to deal with the Implementation of Human Rights Principles and Standards in the Discharge of Duties of The Indonesian National Police.

I look forward to your action in this matter.

Yours sincerely,

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PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:

AKBP. Andi Asdi
Chief of the Takalar Police Regency
Kepala Kepolisian Resor Takalar (Kapolres Takalar)
JL. H. M. Manjarungi No. 1 Takalar 92212 SulSel
Tel: +62 - 418 - 324101
Fax: +62 - 411 - 21135
Inspector General (Irjen) Pol. Adang Rochjana
Head of the South and West Sulawesi police district
Kepala Kepolisian Daerah Sulawesi Barat dan Selatan (Kapolda SULSEL / BAR)
JL. Perintis Kemerdekaan Km. 16 Makassar SulSel
Telp : +62 - 411 - 515201 , +62 - 411 - 514663
Fax : +62 - 411 - 515136 , +62 - 411 - 515144

Mr. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
President of Republic of Indonesia
Presidential Palace,
Jl. Medan Merdeka Utara Jakarta Pusat 10010
INDONESIA
Tel: +62 21 384 5627, ext. 1003
Fax: +62 21 231 4138, 345 2685, 345 7782
Email: mallarangeng@yahoo.com

General Bambang Hendarso Danuri
Chief of Indonesian National Police
Jl. Trunojoyo No. 3
Jakarta Selatan
INDONESIA
Tel: +62 21 721 8012
Fax: +62 21 720 7277
Email: polri@polri.go.id

Mr. Adnan Pandu Praja
Chairman of the national police commission (Kompolnas)
Jl. Tirtayasa VII No. 20 Komplek PTIK Jakarta Selatan
INDONESIA
Tel. +62 21 739 2352
Fax. +62 21 739 2317

Mr. Patrialis Akbar
Minister of Justice and Human Rights
JI. H.R. Rosuna Said Kav. 6-7
Kuningan, Jakarta Selatan
INDONESIA
Fax: +62 21 525 3095

Mr. Beny K Harman
Chairman of Commission one of The House of Representative
(Komisi III DPR RI)
Jl. Gatot Subroto No. 6 Jakarta
INDONESIA
Tel : +62 21 5715569
Fax: +62 21 5715566

Mr. Ifdhal Kasim
Chief of Indonesian Commission on Human Rights (KOMNAS HAM)
Jln. Latuharhary No. 4B, Menteng,
Jakarta Pusat 10310
INDONESIA
Tel: +62 21 3925230 ext. 225/221
Fax: +62 21 3925227
Email: info@komnasham.go.id
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Thank you.
Urgent Appeals Programme (ua@ahrc.asia)
Indonesia Desk (indonesia@ahrc.asia)
Asian Human Rights Commission

 

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
AHRC-UAC-171-2009
Countries :
Issues :
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Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.